Its Too Late
by larkchele
Summary: Puckleberry fanfiction. Just as things seemed to be heading their way, something happens that changes them forever.


Noah Puckerman had always considered himself a huge badass, with the best guns in the whole of Ohio, but in the past few years, someone changed him forever. And that person was Rachel Berry. He'd always tried to promise himself to never let a girl change him, but in truth the small brunette shook up his entire world. Things weren't always daisies and rainbows between them, there had been a few times where he'd had a black eye and a couple of "other" various bruises, but he loved that about her.

Tonight, he sat alone in his apartment in Lima, Ohio, waiting for Rachel to arrive back from New York. Her flight had just taken off a few hours previously, and he felt the minutes dragging by endlessly. They'd spent months apart from one another, and he couldn't wait to have her in his arms again, and give her all the love she deserved. Rachel had been on Broadway these past couple of months, doing a few jobs here and there before being offered a huge main role in Spring Awakening, and he had never felt so proud of her, finally she'd succeeded in all of her dreams. Things were tough, being apart for so long, but if Rachel was happy, Puck couldn't ask for anything more. She belonged on Broadway, she sparkled like the brightest star in history when she performed on stage. Even though he'd never seen her perform for himself, he knew she'd be absolutely amazing. Puck had a huge surprise for Rachel tonight, and couldn't wait to reveal it to her. A small red ring box was clutched in his hands, and every now and then he checked to see if the ring was still there. He knew that they'd always be together, and wanted to promise Rachel he'd always cherish her. Puck had never thought he'd ever propose to a girl, he expected to remain single, but Rachel had changed everything about him, and he wanted to make sure that she would always know he'd be faithful to her. By this time, Puck noticed Rachel's plane would be landing in about half an hour, so he pulled on his jacket and shoved the ring box inside the pocket. Tonight, he was going to propose to Rachel Berry. Puck set off for the airport then, and felt the anticipation buzz inside him.

Rachel was bouncing up and down slightly in her seat, anxiously awaiting the pilot to announce they'd be landing in Lima. She'd missed Noah so much, and couldn't wait to be with him again. New York wasn't the same without him, but he insisted she went alone, as he had his growing pool-cleaning business thriving throughout Lima and into other cities surrounding the area. Though Rachel told him constantly that she was proud of him, he'd never once believe her, and offer her the chance to leave if she wanted. But Rachel had never wanted anything more than the beautiful man she'd dreamt of to come into her life for years on end.

Just as Rachel was expecting the seatbelt sign to flicker on to indicate that they'd be landing soon, there was a large bang from the corner of the plane, and the right side of the plane twisted unexpectedly, Rachel going with it. Panic was arising quickly within the cabin, and various flight attendants tried to calm passengers from the front of the plane. It levelled off for a momentary second, before veering back over to the side again. Shouts of struggle was heard from the cockpit, and the screams from passengers only became louder as smoke filled the cabin, causing Rachel to cough and cover up her mouth. This had to be a dream, she thought, I'll pinch myself, and all of this will go away. But no amount of pinching made the dream go away, all that came was more smoke wafting in through the aisles.

The captains shouted from the cockpit, "Folks, we're going to have to make an emergency landing! Brace everyone, brace!" Screams and cries of children ringed in Rachel's ears as she leaned down to brace in her seat. Cries of family members shouted to one another, and shouts of encouragement was heard from the attendants. Rachel felt nothing, nothing at all, as the plane spun once more before slamming nose-first into the ground.

Puck was driving along the highway when he'd heard the large bang, his car shook with the sheer force of the explosion. At first, he thought a bomb went off, but then a large burst of fire filled the fear a couple of cars ahead of him. People stopped and stared at the flames, not sure whether or not to move closer. He jumped out quickly, not yet realising Rachel was on that flight, and ran towards the scene. Large chunks of metal was scattered around him and a few had small flames still covering them. Stepping closer to the blaze, he noticed a flight number that was strangely familiar to him. Wanting to deny the thought that was slowly becoming more and more true, he decided to look around some more, calling out for anybody who was there to make themselves known, "Hey! Anybody! Anybody alive? Call out, make some noise if you can hear me!" He dragged back a large piece of metal, to discover a small child, her eyes closed softly. Puck knew she was long gone, and realised there was teddy bear that was near her hands. Picking it up, he placed it beside her, not wanting to stay in this situation anymore. Still there was no calls from survivors, and continued to examine the wreckage.

Rachel coughed herself awake, and slowly opened her eyes. Her body ached in pain, and her leg was twisted uncomfortably underneath a chunk of wing that was separated from the rest of the plane. She had no strength left to cry, but tears filled her eyes as she tried to pull herself out. Far away Rachel heard a distant call of a person, possibly a man, but she could barely bring herself to whisper that she was still alive. "Can anybody hear me? Come on, make some noise! Rachel! Rachel Berry!" It was Noah. Noah was here with her, and Rachel tried to call out, but again her small voice betrayed her.

Puck kept on finding more lifeless bodies, and felt like he was going to give up hope. There was only him standing in a mass of fire and twisted metal, and tears that left his eyes didn't bother him enough to wipe them away. He just had to find Rachel, but she was nowhere in sight. He hoped that she missed her flight, or that this was an entirely different plane, but his mind told him to give up hope. Rachel was here, somewhere, and he had to find her. But what would he do if he found her, and was already dead? Time was running out quickly, and Puck felt it.

Rachel brought up enough strength to try and shift the wing off her mangled leg, but it was no use. The wing stayed in the exact same position. Rachel screamed out in pain at the shooting fire that she felt was rushing up and down her leg. She was alone here, maybe her imagining Noah was just a crazy dream. Looking up into the night sky, Rachel seen the beautiful stars surrounding her, along with the terror and heat the flames carried, waiting to attack a now still Rachel.

Puck heard the scream of a woman, and he knew in an instant it was Rachel. "RACH! RACHEL! Where are you!" He rushed past small flames and body parts, hardly focusing on any of them, only hearing Rachel's agonizing scream that cracked his heart. She was here, and she was in serious pain. He was in a daze, and felt like was running in circles before he nearly toppled on top of Rachel. "Rachel, you're here, everything will be fine, come on now, get up," he held out his hand for her, only for her to shake her head, and it seemed to cause her serious pain as she began to cry.

"I can't Noah, I'm stuck here," she cried in agony, making Puck look away in sadness. He could barely handle her when she looked sad, and now that she was crying in pain and covered in blood, it made it that much harder for him. He pushed and shoved with all of his strength on the wing until it crashed onto the ground, freeing Rachel completely. He leapt down beside her, pulling her up into his arms and out of the burning flames until they ended up on a small patch of empty grass. He laid her down onto the floor, and could see her slowly slipping away from him. "Rach, stay with me, come on, there's help, help is coming soon, see, the stars are out tonight, they're shining for you Rach," Puck rambled, hardly recognising what he was saying to her.

Rachel opened her eyes once more, and gripped tightly onto his arm, her breathing unsteady and hitched, "Its too late, too late for me Noah.."

"Don't you dare say its too late! Its never too late! Stay with me, come on, I don't want to lose you, we're going to be together, okay? You and me, forever." He placed soft kisses against her lips and neck, but not in a way to start something romantic, he just didn't want to talk anymore, as something was coming, something he never wanted to face. "Help is going to be here soon for you, and you're going to be fine!"

They held onto one another, Rachel slipping inch by inch away from him, losing all of her remaining strength entirely. Puck knew it was now or never, and he slowly reached into his pocket and took out the red ring box, opening it slowly. "Rachel, this is.. An.." Puck breathed out slowly, soon becoming nervous over proposing to her, and also that he was losing her. "Its an engagement ring, for you."

Rachel's smiled softly, before looking into his eyes, "Well today is finally the day that Noah Puckerman proposes to me, I'd never thought this would come," he smirked, despite the situation at her humour, finally realising that he didn't have to give up hope, she was going to be fine.

"Rach," Puck said, his eyes on her, "I love you more than I've ever loved anybody else, you mean everything and more to me, and I want you and I to stay together forever, I love everything about you, your smile, your laugh, even your punches," at this point, Rachel laughed softly, her eyes closing, and Puck decided to speed things up. "So what I'm trying to say is, Rachel Berry, will you marry me?"

Rachel slowly nodded, whispering a quiet "Yes" before Puck slipped the ring onto her finger, whispering constantly that he'd love her, before leaning down to give her a soft sweet kiss, never wanting to let go of her in his arms. They kissed until Puck forgotten what day it was, then Rachel's hands slowly dropped from his face. "No, not now Rach, help is coming soon, don't you dare let go, keep holding on for me, Rachel we're going to get married, and be together, okay?"

"Never let go of me Noah, never, I love you." Rachel said before her face went peacefully still, no pain filling her beautiful features anymore. "I love you Rachel Berry, I always will," he kissed her again fiercely, as a paramedic walked up to him. About time.

"She's gone," Puck said to him. "She's gone." The paramedic asked him to let go of Rachel, but he resisted and kept hold of her in his arms. "I'm never going to let go, she made me promise, I can't let go of her!" He shouted at the man to back away, and sooner or later he did.

Puck stayed holding Rachel to his chest until sun crackled onto the field, and the flames died down with the pouring rain that soon came. A team of paramedics came to take Rachel away, and this time, Puck let them. He could hardly believe Rachel was truly gone from his life. No more late night phone calls, no good luck texts when she was on Broadway, no more emotional reunions. There would be none of that, and Puck's heart broke with every step he took away from where they'd said goodbye, shaking off anybody who tried to talk to him or offer their condolences, he just wanted to be alone.

Nobody understood why Puck wanted to bury Rachel in the field of where the plane crashed, but to Puck that place had special meaning. It wasn't just where they said goodbye, it was where they made a promise to one another, to love each other forever, no matter what happened to either of them. She was his soulmate, and nothing would ever compare to the love she gave him. Whenever he could, he'd visit that field, to tell Rachel about his day, or how the neighbour parked the car in front of their apartment again, or how beautiful she looked everyday. Somewhere, deep down, Puck knew she was there along side him, and he never needed anymore than that. They were together, and that was all that mattered. 


End file.
